The Dead Past (Puddledown Mysteries, #1)

Puddledown, England, 1948. Hugo Wainwright has been denying his attraction to men his whole life. When he stumbles over a murdered body in the woods, the ensuing investigation throws him in with Tommy Granger, the police inspector’s prime suspect. Certain of Tommy’s innocence, Hugo vows to clear the name of the man he’s falling for, but Tommy has his own secrets; secrets with deadly consequences. More

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Puddledown, England

The year is 1948, the war is over and the evacuees have gone home, although rationing continues. For Hugo Wainwright, who escaped conscription and never had to fight for his country, very little has changed. He lives a quiet life away from the big cities, knowing his desires for other men will lead to disaster if he ever acts on them.

Tommy Granger spent his service on the battlefields of France. He experienced it all: the bloody horrors of war, and the chaos of Dunkirk. Finding employment as groundskeeper in the woods on the outskirts of Puddledown, he lives in solitude, trying to forget all the terrible things he’s seen.

When Hugo stumbles over a body not far from Tommy’s cabin, both men’s lives change forever. There’s a killer in the woods, and the townsfolk are sure Tommy is the culprit. Can Hugo unmask the murderer and prove the innocence of the man he’s falling for, or are the deadly consequences of Tommy’s past about to catch up to him and separate the two men forever?